1. Technical Field
The present invention relates generally to media processing, and more specifically relates to a system and method for saving computational resources by not processing pixels in video/graphics images that do not contribute to the output (e.g., hidden areas).
2. Related Art
As new media-based technologies (e.g., image, video or graphics) enter the marketplace, systems having advanced digital processing features, such as picture-in-picture, have become more desirable. Moreover, with the advent of technologies such as web-based and wireless-based video communications, the ability to efficiently process encoded media data has become particularly critical. Media-based algorithms are usually processed independent of their appearance on the final display. In case of multi-window displaying, many areas are hidden.
Systems for media processing are often designed for a specific quality. In the past, such systems were implemented on dedicated hardware to operate in a specific environment. For instance, in traditional television receivers, specific integrated circuits are combined to perform various functions, e.g. color decoding for NTSC or PAL systems, noise reduction, or frame rate up-conversion. Such dedicated hardware is often designed for worst-case requirements, so there is no need for saving processing resources.
Recently however, the trend of technology is to develop more and more programmable platforms that allow media applications to be implemented in software. Expected advantages include reduced time-to-market, re-use of hardware and software modules, portability, and flexibility. It is known however that programmable components are expensive in terms of silicon area and power consumption compared to dedicated hardware. Accordingly, cost-effective solutions are needed for systems with programmable components in order to provide higher quality or increased functionality.
As noted above, many systems allow more than one application to be shown on a display by using windows (e.g. teletext, picture-in-picture, etc.), or by using a split-screen. Such applications are now common on wide-screen TVs. In order to achieve multiple windows, several media processing algorithms are needed for each specific application, e.g., decoding algorithms; picture enhancement algorithms; graphics overlay algorithms; and display processing algorithms. Some of these include mainly spatial processing, such as spatial peaking, spatial decoding for luminance-chrominance separation of analog signals, and spatial noise reduction. Others include temporal processing, e.g., up-conversion using motion estimation, and pixel-based processing. In any case, processing of data in hidden areas often results in wasted computational resources. Accordingly, a need exists to address this issue in order to lower the resource needs of the system.